13.01.202109:56:00UTC+00China's Bank Lending Falls In December

China's bank lending declined in December from the previous month, the People's Bank of China reported Tuesday. Bank lending fell slightly to CNY 1.26 trillion in December, but was above economists' forecast of CNY 1.22 trillion.

Total social financing, a broad measure of credit and liquidity in the economy, decreased to CNY 1.72 trillion at the end of the year, while economists had forecast it to rise to CNY 2.2 trillion.

M2 money supply grew at a slower pace of 10.1 percent annually. Economists had forecast an annual growth of 10.5 percent.

The credit growth is likely to drop back further in the coming months as the PBoC continues to focus on reining in financial risks now that the economy is back on track, Julian Evans-Pritchard and Sheana Yue, economists at Capital Economics, said.